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Dianne Hardisty: I confess! It turns out I'm a 'water hog'
| Thursday, Jun 12 2008 5:03 PM
Last Updated: Thursday, Jul 17 2008 11:39 AM
In Fresno County, a farmer has started plowing under the cantaloupes he recently planted. Agriculture officials estimate 41,000 acres have not been planted.
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In the massive Westlands Water District, 200,000 acres have been idled and farmers likely will abandon at least 10,000 of the 311,000 acres that have been planted.
Why? There's not enough water.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a statewide drought, as farmers and communities face water shortages due to two consecutive years of below-average rainfall and court-imposed limits on water deliveries from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Residents and businesses are being told to conserve water. In some areas of the state, use is restricted. Farmers and other water-dependent businesses are making tough choices about what and how much they produce. Those choices will impact the prices consumers pay for goods.
The summer of 2008 will be a grim one. Add this water crisis to the skyrocketing prices of gas to fill our cars, energy to cool our homes and food to fill our bellies. Our paychecks are stretched.
Oddly for most folks who live in the "desert" of Bakersfield where the "bake" in the city's name takes on a special meaning as temperatures climb into the triple digits a water shortage doesn't exist. City officials long ago shored up supplies by acquiring water rights and constructing underground storage.
"Speaking for Bakersfield, the emergency really will not affect us too much," Florn Core, the city's water resources manager, told The Californian.
But that doesn't mean we are going to be let off easy. It doesn't mean we will be able to be pigs about the way we use water. We may not go wanting, but we are going to pay more for what we use.
If you live, like I do, in California Water Service Co.'s Bakersfield area, you better start cutting back especially after July 1. Cal Water has restructured its rates, creating three tiers. The lowest rewards the most stingy use; the middle is "average" use; and the highest targets the "hogs."
Or so I thought until I pulled out my water bill and monthly use history going back to 2004.
To understand how this is going to work, you have to understand the terminology and rate tiers.
Water is measured in a unit called CCF. One CCF is equal to 748 gallons of water. Cal Water will seasonally change its rate structure, but for the summer it will be: up to 13 CCFs is the lowest; between 14 and 34 the middle; and 35 or more the highest.
No sweat, I thought.
With just two adults living in an average 1980s tract house on an average-sized lot with average grass (low-watered Bermuda) and a few mature trees (no big forest), I figured we should be in the low tier.
After all, we have no teenager soaking for hours in a shower. We do only two loads of wash a week. It can take two or more days to fill up the dishwasher. Most of our appliances are new or under 10 years old. And since I discovered the joys of Cruz Thru Express, I haven't laid a hose to a car.
Guess again. It seems some months, by Cal Water's standards, I'm a water hog. For example, last month, my household sucked up 37 CCFs of water just into the highest range. A 39, 40 and even a high of 54 were sprinkled among my four-year summer-use history. God help families with kids, who do lots of laundry, take lots of baths and flush lots of toilets.
So what can we do? Cal Water's Web page (www.calwater.com) offers tips, including replacing water-wasting appliances and fixtures, such as toilets. It seems toilets account for 30 percent of a home's daily consumption.
Cal Water suggested rebates might be available to help offset the cost of installing water-saving devices. But when I clicked onto their Web site, I was informed no residential rebates are available in their Bakersfield area.
Short of renovating our homes we can: turn off the water when we brush our teeth; take shorter showers; fix leaky faucets; run dishwashers only when they are full; and replace appliances with more efficient ones.
Try watering your lawn every other day. This requires increasing watering durations and closely monitoring results. Check with Kern County's Farm and Home Advisors Office (868-6200) for landscaping tips.
If you have water-saving tips, send them to Dianne Hardisty at dhardisty@bakersfield.com.